How did you even start to do this? Do you save ticket stubs? Do you have a journal? I’ve seen a certain “jam-band” that shall go unnamed 30+ times and Dylan probably at least that many times — I wouldn’t know where to start just with those 2. Is there some internet concert database — like IMDB for tour dates?

I started with 2006 a few weeks ago and made a complete (I believe) list based on the blog and my memory. When I decided to do it for all the concerts, it became a lot harder.

My blog was pretty useful for 2004-2007. Before that I just would remember seeing bands at certain venues and I could usually find an approximate time by figuring out what else was happening in my life at the time. I had the hardest time remember with bands I’d seen multiple times. To find the exact dates, in general I looked, in order, at 1) the band’s website. Some list past concert dates. 2) google “band name” and “venue name” and see what comes up. tape traders sites would often have this info. 3) the wayback machine first at the band’s site, then the venue’s, then the label, then the booking agent. 4) out-of-date fan sites were also quite often helpful. and lastly 5) message boards and guestbooks on band’s websites would sometime be useful.

There are some concert databases, but not one good one. The Bay Area has the List with a searchable archive. That catches a rediculous number of concerts in the area, but historically misses concerts at certain venues (like the Cafe du Nord).

I’m still remembering bands and concerts and trying to fit them in the the chronology. I expect there’ll be a dozen or two that I’ll never place because there just isn’t enough information about some bands so long ago.

[…] Things have been a bit slow on the concert front in April, just the Dodos/ Wovenhand, Mt. Eerie and Beatbeat Whisper so far. I don’t know what it is, because I went to 11 concerts in March. Maybe it’s cyclical. […]

[…] I also updated my concerts-I’ve-seen list. I hit a breakthrough today when I found ticket stubs to a number of my hardest-to-pin down shows, like the Rachel’s show at the Brattle on Sept 17, 1999. I’d looked extensively through old webpages trying to find the date of that and, it turns out, the only way I could is the ticket stub. Now I only have a handful that I haven’t (and probably won’t ever) be able to place to a specific date and location. […]

[…] I arrived just before David Bazan (myspace), who just signed to Barsuk went on. Now I’ve seen DB a few times in Pedro the Lion, the Headphones, and solo—embarrassingly, I think it now numbers thirteen. That’s unlucky. I’d better see him June 21 at the Bottom of the Hill. […]

[…] Given JV’s recent recommendation, I was a bit sad when I showed up and realized I’d missed all of Blitzentrapper; I came in opener-2nd band change over lull. I realized I hadn’t been to Slim’s in a long time. (According to my records it’s been almost two years.) It’s an odd venue: a big box with poles in odd places, including right at the stage (part of the band is to the right of the pole, part is to the left). […]

[…] [1] As I mentioned in my festival summary earlier, festivals tend to be expensive and far away, they involve camping with a bunch of people I don’t know and seeing acts in spaces with way too many people. I could fly across the country and go to Bonnaroo, sure. I could see the Flaming Lips and maybe eight more bands I want to see with 60,000 people and camp out. On the other hand, I went to 11 concerts this March for the grand sum of $98. None of the venues had more than about 600 people (and in fact, some had as few as 50) and fully seven of them were in the great-to-amazing range. […]

[…] There was a surge forward after her set and people seemed to know, at least by reputation, that this was something you wanted to be in the front for. Having seen the Spree, oh, a few times (the first being almost four years ago—it’s hard to believe), I knew I wanted to be up front. […]

[…] night I saw Apples in Stereo (myspace) at the Wall in Taipei. I hadn’t seen them in a little over 5 years a fact that I was much more embarrassed to admit after the show than before (more on that […]

[…] personal. This is not universal; I don’t think that if someone else attended the same fifty-four concerts I went to this year they wouldn’t have the same list whatsoever. Sometimes a concert is great because it […]

[…] less money and with fewer other people in clubs, simple as that. (Case in point: last March I saw 11 bands for a total of $98. Three incredible shows, four great shows and four good shows. I don’t see […]

[…] Friday was my second night in a row at the Bottom of the Hill. This time I was there to see Two Sheds (myspace) and I stayed to see Elf Power (myspace), an E6 band that I used to be a big fan of but hadn’t seen in 6.5 years. […]

You can look my concerts list. You can see who I’ve seen. I have seen M. Ward but he’s not Saddle Creek (he’s on Merge). Coconut Records isn’t on Saddle Creek. Eric Bachmann is on Saddle Creek and I’ve seen him a few times.

[…] I’ve stated many times that I dislike the Warfield. In fact this was my first show there in over 3 years. And, while I’m being upfront, I was pretty annoyed by the people behind me who were yelling […]